West Brom boss Carlos Corberan had no doubts about big FA Cup selection

Academy graduate shot-stopper Griffiths, 22, was a surprise inclusion in Sunday’s FA Cup defeat, but the head coach admitted it was not a difficult call.

Griffiths, who had only previously made 12 senior appearances for the Baggies and plays second-fiddle to Alex Palmer, was beaten by fine Pedro Neto and Matheus Cunha strikes.

The head coach also claimed that Griffiths’ consistency in training on a daily basis is a reason why Palmer has continued his excellent Championship form this season.

“Griffiths is an amazing goalkeeper,” Corberan said. “We are very lucky to have him. He is working extraordinarily well. He is one of the players from our academy. He is someone with a very good present and future. The good performances of Alex don’t allow me to give more minutes to him. Normally the keeper is difficult to change.

“From the beginning of the cup, my keeper for the cup was going to be him.

“It’s something that he knows and it gives him the motivation because the good performances of Alex depend on the work of the second goalkeeper too.”

Marcos Abad, Albion’s Spanish keeper coach appointed in the summer, works on a daily basis with Palmer, Griffiths, fellow youngster Ted Cann and others.

Hereford-born Griffiths clocked up more than a century of appearances on loan at Cheltenham, Lincoln and Portsmouth before Corberan opted to recall the youth graduate last season and Griffiths was handed a starting berth over David Button while Palmer was sidelined.

He had been limited to just two appearances prior to the derby clash with an instant Carabao Cup exit at Stoke in August and victory over non-league Aldershot early in January.

Griffiths gave a confident display against the Premier League visitors at The Hawthorns and was an assured presence with the ball at his feet as Albion launched moves from deep. He was beaten from 18 yards by Neto’s reversed finish through the legs of Conor Townsend and Cunha’s late effort crashed through his legs from a tight angle.

Corberan continued of Griffiths: “He is somebody who is working very, very well, very hard with our goalkeeper coach and who is improving every single day.

“I saw a lot of personality from him against Wolves. The second goalkeeper can affect the performance of the first keeper.

“The fact that Josh never can allow Alex to relax, the fact that he is always supporting, made me feel full of confidence to play him. My decision was made that Griffiths would play in the cup, it wasn’t dependent on the opponent – it was about the confidence I have in him.”